The Ten Articles of Faith
by domina tempore
Summary: Even Heroes have rules that they live by.
1. The Ten Articles of Faith

**Avengers:** _Ten Articles of Faith_

_Summary: Even Heroes have rules that they live by._

_Disclaimer: The Avengers, Marvel, and all that these things entail belong to their respective owners; I'm just borrowing. No copyright infringement intended! _

_**Author's Note:**__Borrowed the Ten Articles from my martial arts school, where they're an example of how all our students should act. I find that they also apply nicely to a variety of characters and fandoms. (please note that these take place ALL OVER the MCU timeline!)_

_Hope you enjoy! There's a good chance that you won't be seeing too much of me for the next month or so...just as I get back into the fanfiction game, NaNoWriMo appears and I'm off again! _

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**1.**_ Be Loyal to Your Country_

Steve had always wanted to do something worthwhile. Sure, he was sick and scrawny and probably wouldn't live to see thirty; but even if he only had those thirty years, he wanted to help. A lot of people in America had given up a lot of thing so that short, scrawny, sickly kids like him could have a chance at a future. There had to be some way he could honor that.

Joining the military seemed to be the best way. America had sacrificed for him, and he wanted to show that he was willing to do the same for the country he loved. Even if he had to lie at a hundred different enlistment offices before he could get in, because he didn't know how else to do it.

Steve Rogers never backed out on a debt.

**2.**_ Be Obedient to Your Parents_

_"He is not your brother anymore."_

_"How can you say such things? Loki is your son!"_

_"Do not argue with me, Thor. You can lose my favor just as easily."_

Thor was _angry_. How could Odin say such things about his own son, Thor's _brother_? Blood or no, Loki was his brother in spite of what anyone else (including Loki) might say about it. You did not abandon family. Not that Loki should not answer for his crimes, of course; but to cut him off, forbid even his name from being spoken? It was a feeling of abandonment that had set him off in the first place. Nothing good could come of Odin's decision.

Nevertheless, for the moment Thor would obey. It was utterly ridiculous to think of not speaking to his brother or even about him, but Thor had learned his lesson about rash actions. Open rebellion would fix nothing. So for now, he would respect his father's instructions. He would neither go to the dungeons or speak his brother's name.

But Loki _was_ his brother, and Odin could never change that.

**Three:**_ Be Respectful to Your Elders_

There are very few people in the world that Clint respects.

Coulson had been at the top of his list (still is technically, even though he's dead), and Fury is up there even if Clint prefers to be irreverent with him (respect isn't always about language). Nat, obviously (but that's an entirely different thing).

It's a bit of a shock when he realizes how much he respects Stark. The guy is an asshole, but underneath all of the arrogance and flaunted intelligence, there's a guy who worked hard to make something of himself. Tony has recovered from countless tragedies and crippling loss, and somehow he keeps going when Clint would have long since given up. And he would die for his friends.

There are very few people who would count their lives of less value than the life of Clint Barton. That's got to be worth something, right?

**4.**_ Be Faithful Between Friends_

It's a constant struggle for Bruce not to pack up and disappear.

He doesn't care how much the rest of them claim to trust the big guy; the point is that _he_ doesn't trust the big guy. What happens if in the middle of a battle, he decides that one of the Avengers would be a lot more fun to pulverize than the bad guys? Or what if Tony, or Natasha, or Steve accidentally piss him off one day and he throws them out the 50 story living room window at Stark Tower? He knows he can't live with that kind of guilt.

Somehow, though, he can never quite make it out the door. Even when he's managed to pack his bags, someone is always there to stop him and convince him to stick around just a little bit longer. Sometimes, he even believes it will all be okay.

It's starting to feel...not good, but more okay. Maybe it's because even though he doesn't trust himself, he trusts _them_; and crazy people that they are, they trust him too. Bruce knows they're not going to give up on him. It means that he can't check out on them, either.

Friends. It's been a while since he's had those.

_**Five:**__ Be Cooperative Between Brother and Sister_

_"This way, brother."_

_"I told you not to call me that."_

Loki is sick of hearing that word. He is so, so tired of Thor's unrelenting blindness on the issue of their relationship. Let it not be misunderstood that they are allies today – tentative and awkward, but allies – but to call them _brothers_...this is reaching for something that is long dead.

Not quite as dead, though as, Loki proclaims it to be. In spite of his lofty words, he can't help but feel kinship, of a kind. It is _easy_ to work with Thor, as it once was when they were both young and bold and always getting each other into trouble. They'd worked well together, then, and Loki finds himself falling back into the old rhythms with far more ease than he quite knows what to do with.

Thor, of course, will likely say _it is because they are brothers, and such bonds cannot be broken so easily as you wish_, but Thor is as sentimental as a maiden sometimes. Loki knows better. They are both smart enough to know when to work together. _Brotherhood_ has nothing to do with it.

...Nothing at all.

**6.**_ Be Loving Between Husband and Wife_

Pepper learned very quickly that she had to treat Tony carefully.

That wasn't the image he put on for the public, of course; it had been a bit of a shock her first month as his PA to learn the ins-and-outs of his fragile moods. But being exceptionally intelligent – a change from previous PA's, she was sure – she adapted. Learned how to take care of the man, to do what he wanted and be able to tell him things he needed to hear. She'd risen to the challenge and, if their current relationship was anything to go by, she had excelled.

He still occasionally did ridiculous things – JARVIS had archived footage of one twenty-five-foot stuffed rabbit for evidence – but she had learned to let him. Pepper realized that the crazy gifts, the ludicrously priced dinners and little messenger-bots he'd started sending her lately were all his socially awkward ways of saying just how much he loved her, how glad he was that she was in his life to stay. In turn, she kept him running smoothly when there was too much going on in his own head, and wrote him real ihand-written/i notes even though paper and pens were "archaic relics of a bygone era", and she let him do all of the crazy, remarkable things that made him Tony.

And she loved him for it.

**7.**_ Be Faithful Between Teacher and Student_

_The Avengers_, Natasha thinks, _are very aptly named_.

There have been very few causes that she's believed in over the years. The Red Room, for a while; but she's lost her taste for child labor and experimentation. SHIELD to an extent, but there's always been a part of her in reserve, a part that wonders if Fury's goals are really all that different from her last secret organization. She believes in Clint, but he's a partner (lover?), not a cause.

Coulson's death gives her a cause. He had meant (does mean) a lot to her; he'd been her teacher, her father, her friend. More than anyone else, he had taught her about how things worked outside of Russia and helped her to fit in a world where she didn't think she could belong. She owes him everything.

Since she can't pay her debt to him in person, then hunting down every last person who had been involved in his demise and making them pay is going to have to do. Natasha is nothing if not loyal.

**8.**_ Never Use Knowledge Without Just Cause_

It's absolutely maddening for Phil, knowing that Fury used him to get to the Avengers. Not that he hadn't gone along with it, of course – and it _had_ worked – but he was not fond of outright lies. Manipulation was a game that he could play, but being privy to the psych evals of all concerned, he has some doubts. So far Fury's plan has worked beautifully, but there is still plenty of time for it to backfire.

He plans to wait, though. It can be useful to have an extra card tucked away for emergencies (even if it's tedious to _be_ that extra card), and he has a feeling he'll be needed sooner rather than later. And he has the new team to distract himself for the moment. They're good kids, and they keep his mind off of Clint and Natasha and Tony, and what they're all going to do to him when they find out he's still alive.

Phil has lived a long time, and much of it has been spent with SHIELD. If there is one thing that he's learned during this time, it's that information is _valuable_ and _dangerous_. Timing is everything.

**9.**_ Never Retreat in Battle_

The Winter Soldier doesn't know how to walk away.

It isn't a skill that he's needed on missions; you don't walk away from missions until you've completed them. This is a cardinal rule. You do not, under any circumstances, leave a job unfinished. If the mission is theft, you steal. If it's killing, you make damn sure that your target isn't going to be the one to walk away first. If you miss an item, or if a target escapes, then you are _punished_. Punishment is just as bad as death (he should know; he's died a few times). The Winter Soldier has learned not to fail missions.

This comes as a disadvantage when HYDRA is cut off. Left drifting and purposeless, the Winter Soldier sets out to find a mission. He crawls into the deep, dirty places of the world where others fear to go, because this is where missions usually lead; but there is no mission and he does not know how to accept that. He pushes firmly forward because he doesn't know how to run away. It is not an option.

He is the Winter Soldier, and he needs something to fight for.

_**Ten:**__ Always Finish What You Start_

It was bittersweet for Tony to give the command, to watch his Suits explode like fireworks over the ship. On the one hand, he'd been out of control; it was time to let the obsession go. But on the other, he had poured years and a significant amount of sweat and blood into building those things; he'd given them special gadgets and even personalities of their own, and it was hard to watch a part of his heart shatter into a billion pieces. But he believed that the night was an important step.

He planned to make two more suits – he needed a spare – because as much as he wanted it to be over and done with, he knew that one day the world was going to need Iron Man again, and he would need to be ready for that. But on the whole, he was done. Iron Man had done great things, but Tony was getting old, and getting _married_; there were new challenges ahead for him, now. And if he kept all of those suits lying around, he knew he would never let it go.

He had finished in the best way that he knew how; a blaze of glory.

Now it was time to start living.

_fin._


	2. Bonus Chapter: Always Kill Discreetly

_**Author's Note:**__ Bonus chapter! Apparently, when our Grand Master first came over from Korea (in the 50's or 60's) and started the school, number ten in the Articles was "always kill discreetly". At some point this was changed, because you can't just say stuff like that anymore (or teach it to small children!), but I had to put it in here just for fun. Enjoy!_

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_**Bonus Chapter:**__ Always Kill Discreetly_

Slowly, carefully, the team advanced upon the enemy fortress. They worked like a well-oiled machine; while their fearless leader approached the gates straight-on, the rest fanned out to create a nearly perfect, unstoppable army. Indeed a force to be reckoned with, they did not hesitate as they took up their assigned positions, ready at the last moment to burst into the stronghold and confront the tyrant inside.

Suddenly, a dull thump. All eyes widened to stare at the motionless form of their leader crumpled on the path. A small plume of smoke rose from his singled uniform before there was a bright flash. The body disappeared.

After that, the others never stood a chance.

One by one, they were felled. The archer was the first to go, toppling out of his tree and winking out of existence before he hit the ground. The brave warrior was next, taken down as he made a reckless dash to avenge his fallen friends. The spy, halfway up the fortress wall in the confusion, was dropped like a stone.

The last to fall was the knight in shining armor. As he met his doom, he lifted a fist to the sky and wailed in defeat. "Nooooooooooo–!"

Tony threw his game controller across the room, swearing much more violently than his dying avatar. "Oh, you have got to be _kidding_ me! Whose idea was it to send Steve in to do the talking? Haven't we learned by now that the "friendly neighborhood boyscout who happens to have super powers" bit just pisses people off?"

"We are _definitely_ doing it my way next round," Clint decided firmly, not that he had bothered to tell anyone what his way was. He looked to Natasha for support.

She rolled her eyes. "Are you sure you don't want a turn, Bruce?" she waved the controller in Banner's direction. "The gameplay is a little tame for my taste."

Bruce glanced up from his novel. "I'll pass; Big Guy doesn't like games. Besides, the storyline is weak."

"Didn't Tony create this game?" Steve asked around a mouthful of pizza. He had a thoughtful look on his face.

"Yes!" Tony declared hotly. Having retrieved his controller, he was now glaring at it like it was going to come alive and eat him. "As a matter off act, I did spend almost two months of my life painstakingly – painstakingly! – writing the program, creating the graphics, and making the whole darn thing available to the public on the world wide web. That's the internet, for those of us not born in the past hundred years or so." He shot a look at Steve, who seemed unfazed. Huffing, Tony continued, "So the short answer is yes, I _did_ make the game that you all just failed spectacularly at."

"And it is wonderful!" Tony declared loudly, thumping Tony on the back with enough force to leave him gasping. "Do not lose heart, my friends! We have been beaten back, but rest assured that so long as we live and breathe, we shall yet utterly defeat this enemy."

On his third beer since losing the game, Clint gave an enthusiastic "hear, hear!". Natasha responded with more eye rolling.

"Aren't we all forgetting something?" Steve spoke up suddenly, that disturbingly thoughtful look still on his face as he gazed at Tony. "Stark made the game," he pointed out reasonably. "Couldn't he also have rigged it all so that no one besides him could win it?"

"Hey, that's a good point."

"It is not!" Tony spluttered. "I lost too, remember?"

"Yours _is_ the only avatar that didn't disappear," Bruce pointed out without looking up from his book.

Making a series of exasperated sounds, Tony shook his head vigorously. "That's just the way that the game works," he insisted. "The last player's avatar doesn't disappear until the game restarts."

"What if you were playing the bad guy's side, too? How do we know you don't own the fortress?"

"Well I mean, technically I own the game, but –"

"So you _are_ going Benedict Arnold on us?" Steve raised an eyebrow.

"Oh my gosh, _no_! For the last time, I am not some kind of good-for-nothing turncoat. We were playing against some random opponent online; I don't even know who it is!" Tony paused. A frown creased his forehead as he considered that. "Come to think of it, we should probably figure out who this guy is. I mean, if they managed to kick the Avenger's butts – even if it _was_ only digitally – that's got to be some pretty nasty dude behind the fortress."

"I find your accusations hurtful, Sir," JARVIS's voice issued from the big tv.

Tony gasped. "But – wait, what?"

Only Tony Stark could create an AI that was able to sound _sumg_. "Actually, Sir, I am rather a small celebrity in the online gaming community. And if you'll pardon my saying so, you've all just played like a collection of untrained newcomers."

Thor's brow crinkled in confusion. "What does he mean, untrained newcomers?" he demanded. "I will have you know, Sir JARVIS, that I was trained by the finest battle-masters in the Nine Realms –!"

"He means N00bs, Lancelot," Tony said numbly. His eyes had gotten glassy, and he seemed to be losing touch with reality. "He just called us N00bs."

"To borrow the vernacular," JARVIS conceeded.

Tony buried his face in his hands.

_fin._

_Note: And a moment of levity to end things right. Thanks for reading! _


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